Fall 2022 ForestLife

Going to Scale with Shasta Timberlands Working Forest Conservation Project

Straddling the crest that divides the Sacramento and Klamath River basins, PFT’s Shasta Timberlands Working Forest protects the headwaters of these mighty rivers as they flow off Mount Shasta.

Approximately 7,500 acres of biodiverse forests on Mount Shasta are permanently protected at the headwaters of the Sacramento River basin.

Pacific Forest Trust, landowner TC&I Shasta, LLC, and its forest manager Campbell Global, LLC are making great progress together in securing public funds to permanently conserve this +/- 7,500-acre working forest for climate resiliency and watershed health.

Protecting this keystone property is a rare opportunity to establish a vast conserved, managed habitat in a strategic location integrating public and private working lands. In the heart of PFT’s Mount Shasta Headwaters conservation focal area, Shasta Timberlands knits together the checkerboarded ownerships of the adjacent Shasta-Trinity and Klamath National Forests with 42,000 acres of other forestland permanently conserved by PFT. This connectivity is exceptionally valuable for wildlife adapting to climate change because of the abundant water, opportunities for migration in all directions, and varied safe havens in an area that shows slower rates of change than other parts of the state.

“We are proud to partner with PFT on this working forest conservation easement, which has lasting public benefits for wildlife, water flows for people and fish, and climate change mitigation—all while maintaining jobs in the woods and enhancing recreational opportunities.”

— John Gilleland, Chief Executive Officer, Campbell Global

The conservation easement assures the property’s active management will focus on sustaining a more climate-resilient forest, enhancing wildlife habitats, increasing carbon stores, reducing wildfire risks, and protecting water security for fish, farms, and people—all while helping to sustain the resource-based economy of Siskiyou County. The project will also guarantee public access to Mount Shasta’s world-class outdoor recreation.

The project includes Table Rock Meadow, a 425 acre complex of wet meadows and old growth red fir forest.

Conservation of the property’s outstanding biodiversity will help the state to meet its 30×30 goals, supporting an estimated 250 wildlife species, including 25 that are imperiled. A few notable inhabitants are the Pacific fisher, Pacific marten, Cascade frog, McCloud River redband trout, and gray wolf. The proposed conservation easement designates one-third of the property—almost 2,700 acres—to be managed solely for special habitat values.

This exemplary partnership will keep this spectacular property—10 times the size of Golden Gate Park—in private ownership, with its management guided by the conservation easement. This protection on behalf of the public comes at a fraction of the cost of public ownership while ensuring continued private investment in its long-term stewardship.